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April 22
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Julie
gave
 
to:
The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story (Hardcover)
by Diane Ackerman
bookshelves:
historical-fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in January, 2008
Julie said:
"This book is the imagined true story of the experiences of the couple that ran the Warsaw Zoo during WWII, constructed from the wife, Antonia's, journal, newspaper interviews, and other research. The couple did what they could to keep their zoo's an...more
This book is the imagined true story of the experiences of the couple that ran the Warsaw Zoo during WWII, constructed from the wife, Antonia's, journal, newspaper interviews, and other research. The couple did what they could to keep their zoo's animals safe, and also housed 300 or so "guests"--fleeing Jews. The reader learns a lot about Polish history, the Warsaw ghetto, and the Polish uprising agains the Nazi occupation. All the more fascinating because it's true....less
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Julie
gave
to:
The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story (Hardcover)
by Diane Ackerman
bookshelves:
historical-fiction
|
my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
|
| |
read in January, 2008
Julie said:
"This book is the imagined true story of the experiences of the couple that ran the Warsaw Zoo during WWII, constructed from the wife, Antonia's, journal, newspaper interviews, and other research. The couple did what they could to keep their zoo's an...more
This book is the imagined true story of the experiences of the couple that ran the Warsaw Zoo during WWII, constructed from the wife, Antonia's, journal, newspaper interviews, and other research. The couple did what they could to keep their zoo's animals safe, and also housed 300 or so "guests"--fleeing Jews. The reader learns a lot about Polish history, the Warsaw ghetto, and the Polish uprising agains the Nazi occupation. All the more fascinating because it's true....less
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April 16
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Julie
gave
to:
Peony in Love: A Novel (Paperback)
by Lisa See
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in March, 2008
Julie said:
"I just didn't like this book (though I did like Snow Flower and the Secret Fan). To be fair, I didn't expect to like Peony, but one of the reviews said it "belonged in my beach bag,' which sounded like what I was after at the time. I just coul...more
I just didn't like this book (though I did like Snow Flower and the Secret Fan). To be fair, I didn't expect to like Peony, but one of the reviews said it "belonged in my beach bag,' which sounded like what I was after at the time. I just couldn't get into it. I think because there's SO much exposition of this Chinese opera in the background, and too little (for me anyway) about the main characters. it's also one of these books where everything is set in motion by a COMPLETELY AVOIDABLE misunderstanding and I have absolutely no patience for those scenarios....less
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March 13
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New comment on Julie's review of
Dream When You're Feeling Blue: A Novel
(see all 2 comments)
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Julie
gave
to:
Body Surfing: A Novel (Hardcover)
by Anita Shreve
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in March, 2008
Julie said:
"Was pleasantly surprised by this. The story is presented in brief sentences and paragpraghs and it takes a few chapters to get in to that style. However, I was pulled right along by the story, and really liked some of the characters. Two others I ...more
Was pleasantly surprised by this. The story is presented in brief sentences and paragpraghs and it takes a few chapters to get in to that style. However, I was pulled right along by the story, and really liked some of the characters. Two others I didn't really buy their motivations. I *was* a bit incredulous at the ending--sort of a "Are there *reeeally* people that cruel in that way out there?" For readers of other Shreve books, the plot of this book puts you back in the same MA (?) coastal house she's set other things in (Pilot's Wife, Sea Glass, ec.). Also, there's no super big twist as there usually is. Small one that one might see coming and thus not view as a twist at all....less
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March 05
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Julie
gave
to:
Dream When You're Feeling Blue: A Novel (Hardcover)
by Elizabeth Berg
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in March, 2008
Julie said:
"I've never been over the moon for any Elizabeth Berg book I've read, but sometimes they hit me at the right time and they're the perfect light read. This was not one of those books, and I really wanted it to be. It's set in Chicago, on the home fro...more
I've never been over the moon for any Elizabeth Berg book I've read, but sometimes they hit me at the right time and they're the perfect light read. This was not one of those books, and I really wanted it to be. It's set in Chicago, on the home front, during WWII. if nothing else, I expected to like the details that emerge in the background of these types of stories--the music, the dances, the clothes, etc. But those details seemed canned. The story revolves around the three sisters in the Irish Heaney family, each of whom writes to various soldiers who are fighting overseas. The sister the reader gets to know the most is Kitty. But Kitty's character wasn't believable to me, particularly her actions as the novel is wrapping up. I suppose the reader is meant to think that in acting so selflessly, Kitty has matured. But her acts simply didn't ring true to me and while Kitty is indeed quite selfish at the start of the book, I found her selfishness then as over the top as her selflessness at the end....less
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February 26
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Julie
gave
to:
Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance (Hardcover)
by Atul Gawande
bookshelves:
non-ficition
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Julie said:
"I loved this book! If you're a regular New Yorker reader, you may have seen some of the pieces before as Gawande is a regular contributor. The book explores, in a series of essays, how doctors (and others, too) might achieve a greater degree of exc...more
I loved this book! If you're a regular New Yorker reader, you may have seen some of the pieces before as Gawande is a regular contributor. The book explores, in a series of essays, how doctors (and others, too) might achieve a greater degree of excellence. In particular, I liked the pieces about improvements to the treatment of soliders on the battlefield, the history of childbirth and the rise in the use of C-sections (history of foreceps fascinating!), the piece about a hospital in Minneapolis that is the nation's best in treating cystic fibrosis, and the delivery of medical care in India. Gawande is a very good writer. The stories here are compelling and his prose is very lean....less
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February 14
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Julie
gave
to:
Ask Again Later: A Novel (Paperback)
by Jill A. Davis
bookshelves:
fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in February, 2008
Julie said:
"I came to this book expecting a quick, light little read, and was pleasantly surprised. It *is* a quick read, but is a bit too sharp to be "light." It's about a woman in her thirties and all her neuroses which she works out in the wake of...more
I came to this book expecting a quick, light little read, and was pleasantly surprised. It *is* a quick read, but is a bit too sharp to be "light." It's about a woman in her thirties and all her neuroses which she works out in the wake of her mom being diagnosed with breast cancer. I think the author used to write for Letterman so here and there are some really funny sentences--funny because they are so true and astute. And the narrator's mom's character, Joanie, is great: "She's in the living room, on the davenport, with her legs elevated. She's the only person I know who calls her sofa a davenport. Joanie could never sit on a sofa, or a couch. Joanie relaxes on the davenport."...less
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February 04
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Julie
gave
to:
Charity Girl (Paperback)
by Michael Lowenthal
bookshelves:
historical-fiction
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in January, 2008
Julie said:
"This book introduced me to a bit of history I managed to miss, despite the numerous history and women's history classes I took along the way. Who knew women deemed "oversexed" if they had a venereal disease were rounded up and locked in de...more
This book introduced me to a bit of history I managed to miss, despite the numerous history and women's history classes I took along the way. Who knew women deemed "oversexed" if they had a venereal disease were rounded up and locked in detention centers (converted brothels) during WWI--to keep the men safe! Apparently, the men had nothing to do with the spread of STDs. The title comes from the name given to women who weren't prostitutes, but who were thought to have slept with maybe just one man before he shipped out, out of charity or pity. These women were thought to be on a slippery slope. The novel's epigraph reads, "Charity causes half the suffering she relieves, but she cannot relieve half the suffering she has caused," and is interesting to consider once one has finished the book. The heroine has a great spirit and I thought she and the time were beautifully depicted. This is a quick-paced read, but there's a lot to think about as you go along....less
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January 24
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Julie
gave
to:
Twilight (Twilight Series, Book 1)
by Stephenie Meyer
bookshelves:
teen
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my rating:
Added to my books!
add my review
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read in September, 2007
Julie said:
"I LOVED TWILIGHT (as well as its sequels) Eclipse and New Moon. Who would have thought a book about a vampire's romance with a non-vampire would be so much fun! It is a young adult book, but I thought the characters were well-drawn. What can I say...more
I LOVED TWILIGHT (as well as its sequels) Eclipse and New Moon. Who would have thought a book about a vampire's romance with a non-vampire would be so much fun! It is a young adult book, but I thought the characters were well-drawn. What can I say? I finished Twilight and went right out and bought the other two--and they were still in hardback. Can't wait for the next installment of Edward and Bella!...less
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